Emphasis on AI-based smartification of cities
Attention is also focused on the smartification of the energy sector supporting the development of AI cities.
Exhibition Overview
<Event summary>
- Event Name: 2026 Taipei Smart City Summit & Expo
- Schedule: March 17 (Tue) – 20 (Fri), 2026
- Location: Taipei Nangang Exhibition Center, Exhibition Hall 2
- Organized by: Ministry of Economic Affairs of Taiwan, Taipei/Kaohsiung/Taoyuan City Governments, Taipei Computer Association, Taiwan Smart City Industry Alliance
- Subject: Digital and Green Transformation
- Exhibition Fields: Smart Governance, Smart Low-Carbon Mobility, Smart Buildings, Smart Security, Net-Zero Industrial Ecosystem, Energy Transition, IoT Applications, AI Cities, Robot Applications, etc.
- Scale of Participation: Participation from 53 countries and regions and 174 cities, over 3,000 overseas buyers in attendance
The 'Taipei Smart City Summit & Expo,' Taiwan's largest smart city exhibition, was held from March 17 to 20 at Hall 2 of the Taipei Nangang Exhibition Center to mark its 13th anniversary in 2026. This exhibition was 'Digital·It was held alongside the Net Zero City Expo under the core theme of "Digital and Green Transformation." Particular emphasis was placed on AI in terms of "Smart Cities." As AI emerges as a key element reshaping entire urban operating systems beyond simple application technology, the event demonstrated a direction to evolve Taiwan into an AI city platform based on the competitiveness of its semiconductor and ICT hardware industries.
<Exhibition Site>
[Source: Photographed directly by KOTRA Taipei Trade Office]
2026Keyword for the main theme hall of the year exhibition: AI, energy
The AI City Theme Pavilion was one of the key zones of the exhibition, spearheaded by the Taiwan Smart City Industry Alliance (TSSA), ASUS, and Foxconn. Presenting "AI for City Sovereignty" as its core concept, the pavilion demonstrated that AI cities are evolving to a stage where they "understand and act" on their own through computing power and intelligent decision-making. Application examples across various fields, including transportation, healthcare, security, and public services, were showcased. In particular, the pavilion attracted the attention of visitors by presenting technologies closely related to citizens' daily lives in a showcase format. Co-organizer Foxconn unveiled "CityGPT," an AI-based administrative and policy decision support system, while ASUS drew attention by introducing its smart robotics medical solution as a representative example.
[Source: Photographed directly by KOTRA Taipei Trade Office]
The Virtual Power Plant (VPP) theme pavilion emphasized the importance of VPPs and energy infrastructure in supporting smart city development. Amidst the advancement of energy-intensive industries such as AI and semiconductors, and the global push for carbon neutrality policies, this pavilion introduced the concept of VPPs, which enable real-time power distribution by integrating distributed renewable energy and energy storage systems using digital technology. In an interview with the KOTRA Taipei Trade Office, Mr. L, a representative from the participating company e-FORMULA, explained, “VPPs are a core infrastructure for smart cities that contributes to enhancing urban energy efficiency and disaster response capabilities by consolidating and managing scattered, small-scale energy sources.” He added, “By integrating energy storage devices distributed across Taiwan into a single system, it is possible to monitor storage volumes and revenue generation status in real time. Furthermore, since energy can be managed from the perspective of an investment asset, it offers participants tangible opportunities for profit generation.”
[Source: Photographed directly by KOTRA Taipei Trade Office]
Participating Company Interview
1. Acer ITS: “Smartening Parking Solutions, Considering Convenience for Both Service Providers and Consumers”
Acer ITS, a participant in the smart mobility sector, focused on introducing smart parking solutions at this exhibition. Mr. C, an Acer ITS representative, explained, “We place particular emphasis on parking solutions within the smart transportation sector. We have developed a parking management app to make aspects such as parking space management and payment more convenient. While we previously focused on solutions for road parking, we are now expanding our business scope into urban parking lot management to strengthen our services.”
It was also assessed that the demand for easing labor burdens and improving operational efficiency in Taiwan is expanding the low-carbon smart mobility market. “Demand is growing because tasks that previously had to be handled directly by parking attendants are now processed by digitized systems and cameras, thereby reducing the burden on labor,” they noted, adding, “Another significant advantage is that through smart parking solutions, parking lot users no longer waste time searching for empty spaces.”
[Source: Photographed directly by KOTRA Taipei Trade Office]
2. Taiwan Mobile: “Emphasis on the smartification of lifestyle services based on 5G networks”
Taiwan Mobile, a major mobile carrier in Taiwan, showcased various smart city solutions based on its 5G network at the event. A company representative explained, "We provide smart home security, AI medical assistance, smart fire safety, and intelligent parking services based on our network, while simultaneously expanding our business into various fields beyond telecommunications." Regarding smart home security in particular, the representative introduced the product, stating, "Entry is possible through various methods such as facial recognition, password entry, and NFC card tagging. When the doorbell rings, the camera immediately activates to start recording, and users can also converse with visitors in real time via a smartphone app."
In addition, the potential for utilizing 5G-based solutions in the fields of AI medical assistance and smart fire safety was emphasized. "AI medical assistance solutions help doctors provide faster and more accurate treatment by identifying and analyzing a patient's condition in advance," he explained. Regarding smart fire safety solutions, he stated, "It allows firefighters to immediately identify what problems have occurred at the accident scene and check the movement paths of firefighters in real time through the system."
View of the Taiwan Mobile booth
[Source: Photographed directly by KOTRA Taipei Trade Office]
AI City International Forum: Sovereign AI Focus on the intelligent development of base cities
At the AI City International Forum held in conjunction with this exhibition, the concept and direction of AI cities were presented in more detail. ASUS, the Taiwanese computer manufacturer that hosted the forum, explained that while existing smart cities focused on improving operational efficiency, we are now entering an era of AI cities equipped with high autonomy and resilience based on 'Sovereign AI.' They emphasized that as AI-based real-time decision-making and proactive optimization become possible, particularly in the fields of transportation, healthcare, energy, and public safety, a structure in which cities directly control data, computing power, and model governance has become crucial. This implies that AI is establishing itself as a core element reshaping the entire urban operating system, moving beyond the scope of a mere technological tool.
The CEO of TWAI delivered a lecture on the topic of "City-Customized Sovereign AI." The speaker assessed that Taiwan's smart cities are evolving into "Fourth-Generation AI Cities" centered on generative AI, explaining that the core of urban competitiveness lies not merely in accumulating data, but in the capability to securely control that data and connect it to actual public services. In particular, the speaker emphasized that robust computing infrastructure, local AI models reflecting regional characteristics, and the integration of urban services based on these will be key factors in realizing AI cities in the future.
[Source: Photographed directly by KOTRA Taipei Trade Office]
implication
This exhibition demonstrated that Taiwan's smart city industry is rapidly shifting toward integrating diverse urban functions, such as transportation, healthcare, energy, and public safety, centered around AI. In particular, the concepts of "AI City" and "Sovereign AI," repeatedly presented at the event, showed that the industry is evolving beyond mere digital administrative advancement into a structure where cities directly control data and computing capabilities and connect them to actual services. This trend aligns with the fact that "realizing an innovative economy and a smart society" was presented as one of the eight major visions in the "2025–2028 National Development Plan" established by Taiwan's National Development and Reform Commission.
Furthermore, the fact that Virtual Power Plants (VPP), smart buildings, and energy management technologies were highlighted as key components at this exhibition demonstrates that the spread of AI and urban transformation are ultimately directly linked to issues of power and energy infrastructure. Taiwan's Ministry of Economic Affairs projected that domestic electricity demand will grow at an average annual rate of 1.7% until 2034. Analysis indicates that advancements in AI technology are one of the major factors driving the increase in Taiwan's annual electricity demand from 2838 billion kWh in 2024 to 3362 billion kWh in 2034. This suggests that in the future AI-driven smart city market in Taiwan, the importance of energy storage systems, VPPs, and smart power management solutions is highly likely to grow alongside application services such as transportation and security.
From the perspective of Korean companies, it is necessary to view the Taiwanese market as a collaborative market where they can verify the applicability of their technologies through local demonstrations and jointly build system-integrated solutions. At this exhibition, Taiwan clearly demonstrated a trend of prioritizing platform connectivity, operational efficiency, and local applicability over individual devices. Therefore, in fields such as smart parking, AI medical assistance, public safety, and energy management, it appears more effective for Korean companies to propose collaboration models and system-integrated approaches tailored to local demand, rather than simply supplying products, by partnering with local companies.